Middlesbrough will be looking to improve on their 2023/24 finish in the new season.
Boro are gearing up for another campaign in the Championship under manager Michael Carrick.
The former Manchester United midfielder took the reigns at the Riverside Stadium in October 2022.
Since Carrick’s arrival, Middlesbrough have been a much more cohesive side with a clear style of play and vision.
However, the English coach has still not been able to return Steve Gibson’s club to the Premier League for the first time since 2017.
The Teessiders had a superb debut season under their current manager, finishing fourth in the division and reaching the play-off semi-finals.
Boro lost to Coventry City in the semi-finals but it was still a superb season given how badly they started under Chris Wilder.
Big things were then expected of Middlesbrough in 2023/24 but while it was not a terrible season, it was slightly disappointing.
Rav van den Berg tells Middlesbrough to change
Boro lost several key first-team players in the summer of 2023, which forced the club to sign quite a lot of new stars ahead of 2023/24.
This hampered Middlesbrough’s progress early in the campaign as Carrick was forced to try and embed too many new additions at once.
The Teessiders also had horrible injury luck last term, with an average of 6.5 senior stars missing per match.
Now, Rav van den Berg has outlined what Middlesbrough must change to improve on their 2023/24 season, as per Teesside Live.
He said: “I think there is belief about what is possible this season. What we showed last season was that at certain times and in certain games, we were pretty good.
“But we were inconsistent, and the way we started the season, I don’t think it could have been worse.
“We have to change that this time. The end of the season was really good, but the way we ended last season is the way we have to start this one.
“We have to play every game consistently, that is the main thing we have to change.”
Why Middlesbrough will win Premier League promotion
Middlesbrough finished four points outside the top six in the previous campaign but should be among the favourites for promotion this season.
The majority of Boro’s senior squad is now back fit and maintaining a small injury list this time around will boost Middlesbrough’s promotion chances massively.
Carrick and co. have also been very selective in their requirement this summer, signing just three first-team players so far.
This means they will avoid a repeat of their 2023/24 struggles early in the season as not as many players need time to adjust to their new club.
Perhaps most importantly, however, Boro have kept hold of all of their key players from last season.
Middlesbrough would need a ‘massive’ sum to sell Emmanuel Latte Lath, with a figure of £20-£25m touted.
Van den Berg is expected to sign a new Middlesbrough contract after summer transfer interest in the centre-back.